Second Chances
by Daisy8
Summary: Very few people are blessed with second chances. Will Bosco make the most of his? Can he stop fate?
1. Default Chapter

Bosco stared out the window of the RMP, gently tapping his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited for Faith. It was the 20th of June. Only ten more days till he was free of her and transferred to ACU. She was taking forever in the drug store, probably picking up something she could have easily gotten after the shift. He had refused to go in with her and was seriously annoyed that she made him stop.  
  
He didn't want to be here; he wanted to be riding with Cruz but somehow got stuck doing street work with Faith. He checked the time again and decided to give her 2 more minutes or he was going to go in there and drag her out. He suspected that she was just looking for a way to get away from him, anything to get out of having to sit next to him in the RMP. He couldn't remember the last time they rode together without long periods of silence filling the air. Most attempts at starting a conversation turned into arguments about Cruz and that led to even more silence once they were through yelling at each other.  
  
He was so upset with her. Why couldn't she see that Cruz wasn't the uber- bitch Faith made her out to be. Sure she might be a little obsessed with her worked but aren't all good cops? He had given up trying to prove his point with faith, there was no reasoning with her and everytime they talked he got more and more irritated with each word she spoke.  
  
He couldn't remember how it got this way between the two of them, but he was ready to move on, ready to start his new partnership with Cruz.  
  
Bosco checked the clock again and let out an exaggerated sigh. That was it. He was going in there and dragging her out with handcuffs if he had too.  
  
Walking into the store he quickly made his way to the counter toward the back, hoping she was there paying for something and not still looking around.  
  
"Faith! Where are you, we gotta go!"  
  
The store was eerily quiet and Bosco felt a pang of worry in the pit of his stomach. Rounding the corner of the last isle he found himself standing face first into the barrel of a gun. Three men were spread out in front of the counter. One was pointing a gun at the store owner, the other was pointing at Bosco and the third has his weapon trained on Faith, aiming directly at her head.  
  
Bosco looked at Faith out of the corner of his eye. She never even had time to draw her weapon and was kneeling on the floor with her hands in the air. She looked terrified, but it was only noticeable to him.  
  
"Look, we don't want any trouble. Just put the guns down and no one has to get hurt" Bosco said calmly, trying to reason with them. He couldn't remember ever being able to talk down a robber but he supposed it was worth a try.  
  
The man next to Faith was obviously high on something, and his hand holding the gun kept twitching involuntarily. Even more so when he started talking.  
  
"Nope, Uh, we can't. Cause ya know, you've seen us. An you're cops an all. We can't. We can't.." He continued to babble when one of the others, the one pointing his gun at Bosco, started to yell at him.  
  
That moment seem to move in slow motion. He saw the opening, saw the man look over his shoulder to yell at his accomplice. Bosco glanced at Faith and their eyes locked together. She knew what he was going to do, and nodded slightly. Bosco grabbed his gun from it's holster and pointed it at the robber closet to him, fully intent on shooting him. What he didn't count on was the third man seeing him and alerting the others. The sound of gunfire rang throughout the room and Bosco quickly looked around for Faith, he spotted her but only in time to see her disappear. One moment she was there looking him in the eye as if she knew what was going to happen and was trying to telling him everything she's always wanted to say, without saying a word. And the next moment she was gone, shot in the head by the gunman doped up on drugs.  
  
It was all so fast, he barley registered what had happened. He looked around and noticed that the gunman where gone, they had apparently taken advantage of Bosco's stunned state and ran out the door without him noticing. He dropped to his knees next to faith, slowly closing his eyes and placing his head in his hands.  
  
"Bosco will ya wake up, we got a call!"  
  
He jerked his head up at the sound of that voice. It couldn't be her. It was impossible. Looking around he found himself sitting in the RMP and staring directly at Faith who was giving him an irritated look.  
  
"What's your deal today, ya look like you've seen a ghost" She said staring back at him and then rolling her eyes when he didn't answer her.  
  
"Faith?" This couldn't be real and he was having a hard time wrapping his brain around the fact that she was sitting right next to him, looking very much alive.  
  
"No, it's her evil twin. Who else would be sittin in the RMP with you Bos?"  
  
He felt the overwhelming urge to hug her, to touch her and make sure she was real. He slowly reached out his hand and traced the side of her cheek. She looked at him, obviously puzzled by his action, but made no attempt to pull away.  
  
"You're realy here. It's realy you?" he said in voice barley above a whisper.  
  
"Bosco you're scarein me. Five minutes ago you wouldn't say two words to me and now..what's going on?"  
  
"Nothin , it's nothin. I'm just glad you're here that's all. Come on, you said we had a call"  
  
He didn't know what had just happened but he wasn't about to question it. Faith was here, right next to him. That was all that mattered.  
  
He glanced at the clock and absent-mindedly asked her what the date was.  
  
"It's the 15th, why?"  
  
TBC.. 


	2. Chapter 2

Bosco sat in front of his locker. It had been a long shift and he still wasn't any closer to figuring out what had happened earlier. It was like something out of the twilight zone and he was starting to wonder if he'd gone crazy.  
  
But it was too real and he knew he didn't imagine it. He had five days. Five days to change fate.  
  
He looked over at Faith and couldn't imagine his life without her. Funny how seeing someone die can make you realize how much you care about them. He had practically stalked her all day, afraid to let her out of his sight, afraid that he might end up right back in that convenience store at any moment. It made him feel better to keep her close to him, just in case.  
  
Faith glanced his way and caught him staring at her, then quickly looked away. He'd been acting weird all day. He wouldn't even stop the RMP to let her use the bathroom, insisting that she wait until they got back to the precinct. He suddenly seemed so protective of her, but she didn't know what to think of it. Part of her loved the fact that he wasn't ignoring her anymore, but the other part dismissed it as another one of his mood swings.  
  
She chanced a look at him again and was surprised to find him still staring at her.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Bosco snapped back to reality and got up to shut his locker. "Nothin, sorry. Hey, do ya need a lift home?"  
  
"No, I think I'm just gonna walk"  
  
"Well, how 'bout I walk with you?"  
  
She gave him a hesitant look before responding. She couldn't understand what was going on. What was he doing? They hadn't been speaking to each other for weeks and now all of a sudden he wants to be friends again? Does he relay think that a ride home and a smile will take back all the terrible things he said? No, she couldn't do it. She couldn't let him keep playing with her emotions like this.  
  
"No, I'll be fine on my own." She turned to leave but was stopped abruptly when he grabbed her by the arm.  
  
"Faith please, I don't want it to be this way between us anymore. I don't know how it got like this but whatever we're fighting about, it isn't worth it. Cruz isn't worth it."  
  
She couldn't believe what she was hearing and she had a sudden urge to ask him if he was on something.  
  
"Oh really, she's not worth it, huh? You seemed to think a lot differently just yesterday, and the day before that, and the weeks before that. Why the change of heart?"  
  
"I can't really explain it. I just know that ACU isn't what I want. Cruz isn't what I want. And I was to blinded by her to see that, to see what you were trying to tell me all along. I never should have said what I did to you Faith. I didn't mean any of it and if I could take it back I would, in a heartbeat."  
  
He seemed so sincere and she felt all her resolve start to melt away.  
  
"You can't take things like that back Bos. But I shouldn't have said what I did either. I just don't know what to think. If you don't want Cruz anymore, what do you want?"  
  
"I want it to be like it was. I want us to be partners again. But only if you want to" He searched her eyes, waiting for a response and hoping that she wouldn't turn him away.  
  
"You wanna grab a drink?"  
  
Bosco graced her with a wide smile and nodded. That smile was infectious and soon Faith found herself grinning like an idiot too.  
  
Bosco looked around the library as he walked past the different sections. He figured that a quick trip here might help to explain what had happened and decided to drop by before his shift.  
  
He finally came to a stop in front of what he assumed to be the right category. 'Unexplained phenomenon and Witchcraft' Pulling out a few different books and heading over to the nearest table he couldn't help but wonder what other people would think, seeing him with about a dozen books on time travel, premonitions, spells, and other just as weird subjects.  
  
There had to be something in here that would tell him what to do, how to stop what he thought was inevitable. He had hoped that telling Faith how he felt and patching up their friendship would solve everything, but he found out soon enough that it didn't work that way. Yes they were talking to each other and had been reassigned to 55 David permanently, but the basic events of the last two days had still been the same. He still spilled his coffee in his lap earlier that morning, his mother still called last night for some unknown reason, and Christopher still yelled at him for being too rough with a suspect, using the exact same words that he did the first time it happened.  
  
He fingered through the pages of each book, not finding anything even remotely useful. From what he read, he had either been hexed by a leprechaun, traveled through a wormhole, or was somehow physic. But none of them explain how to stop Faith from being shot. He supposed he could just whisk her away to some far off cabin and pray that the shooters didn't follow them, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be that easy. She would just die another way, maybe the cabin would catch on fire, or she'd hit her head on something while making breakfast, the possibilities were endless.  
  
Bosco knew he couldn't just prevent it, he had to stop it, and he only had three more days to figure out how. 


	3. Chapter 3

Bosco looked out the window of the small diner. It was a peaceful outside, people were happily bustling around, oblivious that anything bad could ever happen to them. It almost seemed like the calm before the storm.  
  
Faith sat across from him chatting on about something Fred had done. Apparently he and Emily had crossed over to the dark side together and are plotting against her. He watched as the emotions on her face changed from angry and annoyed to just sad and worried.  
  
He'd never noticed before how sad she was, how disconnected from her family she seemed to be. Maybe it was because he never looked closely enough, never really paid attention when she talked. But now that's all he did. He watched her, trying so hard to memorized her face, her actions, the way she spoke, even the way stray pieces of hair fell out of her bun and landed gracefully around her eyes.  
  
She was beautiful. Why hadn't he noticed it before? All those year together and it never crossed his mind that what he was looking for was right in front of his face all along. Was he really so hardheaded that only seeing her die would make him realize how much she meant to him?  
  
He was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of her sighing heavily.  
  
".And then he said that I shouldn't even try to discipline her, because I'm never around when anything happens anyway. He says she's almost an adult and I should stop treating her like a child. Can you believe that?"  
  
"No. I think Fred doesn't know what he's talking about. You do the best you can Faith"  
  
"Well I guess my best isn't enough. It's not like I don't wanna be there ya know. I try to talk with her and I try to be around but it just never works."  
  
She absent-mindedly stirred her coffee and stared off into space. He hated seeing her this upset and felt the need to do something, anything that would make her happy even for a minute.  
  
He reached for her hand and pulled her out of the booth, grinning widely.  
  
"Come on, we're goin somewhere"  
  
"What, where..Bosco where are we going"  
  
"I can't tell ya, it's a surprise" he hailed a cab and directed the driver to Central Park before finally letting go of her hand.  
  
"A surprise, huh? Is it a good surprise? Are you sure you can't tell me?" She asked with a smile.  
  
"Now it wouldn't be a surprise if I told ya would it?"  
  
"Well you could tell me anyway and then I'll act surprised when we get there" she said, smirking at him when he rolled his eyes at her.  
  
The driver pulled up to Central Park and Bosco grabbed Faith's hand again leading her out of the car and down the pathway. It was nearly 12am and completely dark outside expect for the streetlights and various buildings. He hoped they didn't arrive too late.  
  
Just then he spotted what he was looking for and led her to a big clearing that was illuminated with lights. Faith stopped abruptly and stared at him in shock.  
  
"How did you know I wanted to do this, I never mentioned it?"  
  
"Magic" he said, winking at her and leading her further into the clearing.  
  
They stopped in front of a huge hot air balloon. Bosco silently congratulated himself for remembering that there was a fair going on this week and balloon rides were given at night so you could see the city lights from above, and maybe even a few stars.  
  
He quickly paid the operator and both he and Faith climbed into the balloon. Seconds later they were rising slowly into the sky, away from the tall buildings and out toward the water.  
  
Soon they could see the expanse of the city underneath them. Lights were spread out as far as the eye could see with the occasional reflection in the water. It was breathtaking. He glanced over a Faith and found her glued to the picture in front of them.  
  
"So what do ya think? Was it a good surprise?" he asked quietly.  
  
She looked over at him and smiled before pulling him into a hug.  
  
"Thank you. This is...amazing."  
  
He closed his eyes and hugged her back gently, try desperately to memorize what it felt like to hold her, hoping it wouldn't be the last time.  
  
TBC.... 


	4. Chapter 4

The last two days flew by in a blur and Bosco found himself sitting in the RMP with Faith on the 20th of June. He played the events of this day over and over in his mind, searching for a way to stop the shooting but always coming up blank. He couldn't understand why he was brought back and given a second chance if he couldn't do anything to save her. He regretted not whisking Faith off to that cabin he'd thought of before. Maybe it was possible to just prevent it and everything would continue as normal. What if he'd missed his chance?  
  
"Bos, I need some Chapstick. Stop at the next drug store okay?" She wasn't expecting an answer and just waited for him to pull into the next store.  
  
Bosco's heart was beating a mile a minute. This was it. It was starting. The chain of events that he wasn't sure he could break. But he refused to drive her to her death. He wouldn't make it that easy.  
  
"Can't you just get some after the shift"  
  
"No, I can't. My lips feel like the Sahara. Just stop I'll only be a minute."  
  
Bosco reached over and handed her something from the glove compartment.  
  
"Here, use this"  
  
"Bosco that's disgusting. Why is it even in our car? No wait, I don't want to know why"  
  
Faith held the tube of lubricant by the edge and tossed it back into the glove compartment, then grabbed it again and tossed it out the window. She'd never be able to look at the glove compartment again without having weird thoughts if she left it there.  
  
Bosco shrugged his shoulders and gave her a confused look.  
  
"What? It's a just in case tube...ya know, just in case"  
  
"Just when I think I've herd it all.." she was cut off by the sound of the radio.  
  
"55 David respond to a robbery attempt at the Mini Mart Drug Store on 78th and Lexington."  
  
" 55 David, 78th and Lexington" Faith answered the call quickly, not leaving Bosco any chance to object. She had already flipped on the sirens when she noticed he wasn't starting the car.  
  
"Bosco come on let's go!"  
  
"No. We can't go, just trust me on this Faith. Someone else will pick it up"  
  
"What are you talking about? We can't just ignore a call, we have to go Bosco co.." She was interrupted when he grabbed her by the shoulder and yelled something she didn't quite catch.  
  
"What?"  
  
He took a deep breath before repeating himself. "I said, if you go in there you'll die."  
  
Faith was stunned by his words and unsure of how to respond. She waited for him to say it was a joke, but his eyes were hauntingly serious.  
  
"55 David respond to a robbery at the Mini Mart Drug Store. Shots have been fired and there are no other units in the area"  
  
Faith reached over and started the car before looking him in the eye and saying only two words.  
  
"Go. Now."  
  
They stood at the entrance of the Mini Mart and peered in, hoping to catch a glimpse of the gunmen. There was no one to be found and Bosco assumed they were toward the back by the counter. He signaled for Faith to fall in behind him before entering the store.  
  
They quietly made their way passed the isles and stopped at the sound of voices. What Bosco saw was all too familiar. Two gunmen were arguing while the third raided the cash register. Only this time the storeowner had been shot and was lying slumped over the counter. The extra time it took Faith and him to arrive on the scene had cost this man his life.  
  
Bosco raised his gun at the closest perp and aimed for his shoulder. But fate had a different plan. Sully chose that moment to radio Faith and ask for their position, oblivious to the fact that he had just given them away.  
  
The sound of gunshots rang throughout the room, leaving no question that many of the bullets hit their target. Bosco shot two of the gunmen in the leg, bringing them down in an instant. Faith got the third man in the arm and as he fell backwards his gun went off, sounding one final shot.  
  
"We did it! I didn't think we could, I was so worried, but we did it Faith!" Bosco rambled on as he tried to catch his breath.  
  
"Faith?"  
  
She wasn't answering him. He swung around and found her lying on the floor in a pool of blood. She had caught that last bullet in her neck and was now gasping for breath.  
  
"Oh god no, not again." Bosco knelt down beside her and applied pressure to her wound, hoping to somehow stop the blood flow. He could hear sirens in the background and wondered what was taking them so long.  
  
"Just hold on Faith. You're gonna be all right. Please just hold on" he continued to speak soothing words to her until he was pulled away by Sully and Davis. They had to drag him out of the building until he gave up and fell to the floor, resting his head in his hands.  
  
********  
  
Bosco never believed in fate or destiny, but that day changed his mind forever. He had no doubt that Faith was meant to die in that building, and no matter what he did there was no stopping it.  
  
" Bos?"  
  
"Yeah"  
  
"Penny for your thoughts?"  
  
Bosco listened to the quiet beeping of the heart monitor before answering her. "I was just thinkin how your guardian angel must be workin overtime"  
  
Faith grinned back at him. She could just imagine her guardian angel with a tattered white dress and skewed halo, trying desperately to keep up with her.  
  
Bosco slipped his hand into hers and held it gently. She was lucky. Or maybe he was the one that was lucky. He'd thought for sure that he lost her that day. She died on the floor of that drug store, even if it was only for a minute. Somehow the paramedics brought her back and she managed to defy fate.  
  
The last five days had been an eye opening experience for him. He saw her in a different way now and he fully intended to make the most of their second chance together.  
  
"How did you know what would happen?"  
  
Bosco smiled down at her and squeezed her hand. "It doesn't matter now. You proved me wrong."  
  
The End! 


End file.
